Dundee recovery village splits opinion as petition calls for site rethink

A petition has been launched calling for a rethink of the proposed location of Dundee’s recovery village.

The Courier revealed on Wednesday that the former bowling green in Mill o’ Mains had been chosen for the £2.3 million recovery village planned for the city.

The project is the brainchild of charity Social Bite, who set up a similar project in Edinburgh aiming to help homeless people in the city move into permanent accommodation.

Dundee’s recovery village will have 10 single-occupancy modern “nest houses” and a 10-bed shared accommodation facility.

There will also be a community hub for peer and staff support, wellbeing activities and family time.

To live there, residents must be stable in their recovery journey and show they want to make positive changes, like starting education or finding a job.

Social Bite say they worked in partnership with Dundee City Council to identify the best potential site for the village.

Petition gathers hundreds of signatures

However, the confirmation of the Mill o’ Mains location has been met with concern from residents.

A petition has now been set up urging Dundee councillors to consider other locations and has amassed over 570 signatures so far.

It read: “There is an alternative. Dundee has a number of derelict industrial sites that are drastically underutilised.

“Transforming one of these neglected areas into a recovery village would align with urban renewal initiatives and offer a strategic, sustainable solution without sacrificing our precious green spaces.

“This not only serves the purpose of rehabilitation but also helps revitalise an underdeveloped area without disrupting our community’s harmony and safety.”

‘Great concept, wrong location’

News of the Dundee recovery village has also split opinion on social media.

Joanna McDonald commented: “I think this recovery village is a great concept, but the proposed location raises some concerns.

“It might be more effective in a rural setting, where access to distractions is limited.”

Jacqueline Paterson added: “The empty space at Stracathro hospital (the mulberry unit) would have been the ideal location for this in my opinion.

“I hope this does help a lot of addicts but I don’t think it will where it is.”

However, Dean Hurrell wrote: “Absolutely brilliant about time, this will help so many people.”

And Adam Newth added: “An amazing project – an amazing enterprise people should get behind this.”